Sat 21 Oct 2023
Saturday 21st October 2023
RFU Counties 2 Herts/Middlesex League
Hendon RFC 20 - 37 Old Millhillians RFC
Further serious injuries add concerns as Hendon record fourth loss
Will Wheeler, Hendon’s head coach, did not expect to lose two further players to add to his list of unavailable players after this week’s game, commenting “After only a month’s rugby the Club have now lost 6 key players with lengthy injuries. Add to this, the four other squad players being unavailable through work, all of which has added to Hendon’s poor start to the League season. That said we will work with the Squad Players available and produce a side worthy of this League and plug the defensive holes that allowed Millhillians to record their first win of the season”.
Only minutes into Saturday’s match, Hendon conceded a defensive penalty giving OM’s an easy kick at goal followed 10 minutes later with a well-worked converted try and took control at 0-10.
With Hendon getting into the match disaster struck on 25 minutes when backline player, Saxton Stout, collected on halfway and made it to the OM’s 5-metre line. He was then tackled leaving him unable to make the pass for the score with a later confirmed broken ankle.
From the restart, Billy Yegon charged the line but was high tackled with Cian Hynes converting for the home outfit 3-10.
OM’s playing downhill with the slope then took full advantage of the reformed Hendon backline with their right winger running in two further scores to turn around at halftime 3-22 ahead.
In the second period, Hendon had to keep the ball tight with scrum-half Rich Roberts managing the game. It was prop Kan Cheng making the first break to put Hendon on the OMs goal line and Rossa Dooley finishing with a score converted by Hynes 8-22 after 10 minutes of play.
From the restart, Hendon ran from defence but an adjudged crossover of players gave OMs the penalty on the Hendon 10-metre line to convert again. 8-25.
Dooley set up the next Hendon attack with a great run to the OM's 22 but sustained an ankle injury before passing to Yegon. However, from the ruck OMs kicked upfield to clear over the Hendon backline and then regathered and scored another try 8-32.
Hendon from the restart was back into attack and soon camped on the OM's 22 who were penalised for repeated offences and finally rewarded with a penalty try after Captain Nick Andrews was high tackled when attempting to score to make the score 15-32.
Play was all with Hendon in the closing 10 minutes with several individual attempts to score with Yegon finally crashing over in the corner 20-32.
With only minutes left to play Hendon was looking to score a much-needed bonus point 4th try with the team in the OM's 22, but a miss-pass allowed OM's to collect, run the length of the pitch to score an unconverted try to finish with their 1st win of the season 20-37 leaving Hendon with the poorest results in the League.
